Friday, May 2, 2014

CU-Boulder vows to exceed White House recommendations on sexual violence

The University of Colorado wants to be a "national leader" in aiding students who have survived sexual assault, the school said Tuesday after the release of a White House report recommending actions colleges should take to protect victims and inform the public about the magnitude of the problem.

"We want to be on the cutting edge," spokesman Ryan Huff said, adding that the school hopes to revamp its programs around Title IX education, sexual assault prevention and bystander training.

The White House's 20-page report implores schools to work on identifying confidential victim's advocates and conducting surveys to better gauge the frequency of sexual assault on their campuses.

The recommendations stem from a 90-day review by the task force that President Barack Obama created after his administration heard complaints about the poor treatment of campus rape victims and the hidden nature of such crimes.

While the report states that about 20 percent of female college students experience sexual assault, a national culture of silence — an estimated 12 percent of college women attacked report it to police — has left CU and others unable to even begin helping the vast majority of survivors.